Bulerías Compás: How to Count 12 (and Why You Start on 12)

The first time you hear bulerías, the beat seems to hide. The trick is knowing where the cycle begins. This guide gives you the 12 counts, the accents, the reason you start on 12, and a way to drill it until it feels natural.

How do you count the bulerías compás?

Count 12 beats and start on 12: "12 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11". The accents fall on 3, 6, 8, 10 and 12, and then the cycle comes round to 12 again. According to Wikipedia's entry on bulerías, the rhythm is "most often played with accents on the 3rd, 6th, 8th, 10th and 12th beats", and it is normally played at 195 to 240 beats per minute.

Step by step: counting the 12

Say the 12 and the accents

Say all twelve numbers out loud and push the accented ones a little harder. Write it as a table and the shape is easy to see.

Read the accents as groups of 3, 3, 2, 2 and 2 beats, each group ending on an accent: 1 2 3, 4 5 6, 7 8, 9 10, 11 12.

Start on 12, not 1

Beginners count "1 2 3 4" from the top, like a dance in 4/4, and feel lost. In bulerías, the cycle always starts on beat twelve, so the accented beat is heard first. Wikipedia's entry on compás adds that flamenco accents "do not correspond to the classic concept of the downbeat". So 1 is not the strong beat here. Treat 12 as the head of the cycle, then let 1 and 2 lead you towards the next accent on 3.

Count it in sixes

Twelve numbers at this speed is a mouthful. The cycle can be thought of as a bar of 6/8 followed by a bar of 3/4, and dancers often count a bar of 6 instead of 12. Try "12 1 2 3 4 5" then "6 7 8 9 10 11" and notice that the accents sit at 12 and 3 in the first half, then 6, 8 and 10 in the second. It is the same cycle, just counted in two short halves.

Find the 1 in the music

When you listen to a recording, wait for the accent that feels like a landing. That is 12. Then count back: the beat before it is 11, and the one after is 1. If you need help locating the start of a phrase in any style, read how to find the 1 in music.

The palmas can help. They are played in groups of 6 beats, which creates counter-rhythms inside the 12, so listen for the pattern that repeats every two groups. The palmas also come in two kinds that flamenco players name: palmas sordas, the soft, muted claps, and palmas fuertes, the loud, open ones. The quiet claps keep the cycle going while the loud ones mark the accents.

A short example

Play a recording and tap your foot. Say "12" on the first strong landing you hear, then "1 2 3" while the music moves on, and keep going to 11. When the next 12 arrives on the same kind of accent, you have found the cycle. If it arrives early or late, shift your starting point by one beat and try again. Do this for a full minute before you add any claps.

Common problems

• Landing on 1. If your phrase ends on 1 instead of 12, you started a beat late. Restart and say 12 first.
• Rushing. At bulerías tempos, speeding up is easy. Keep the unaccented beats light and the accents even.
• Losing the cycle. Bulerías is not tied to a strict 12-beat scheme and can include sections of 6 or 3 beats. If the music seems to change length, go back to counting in sixes and wait for the next accent on 12.

Bulerías vs soleá

Both rhythms share the same accents: Wikipedia's compás entry lists 3, 6, 8, 10 and 12 for soleá as well. What differs is the speed and the feel. Soleá is a 12-beat metre that can be played rubato, though a dancer needs a regular tempo, and its palmas are often silent on beats 4 to 6. Bulerías began as a fast, upbeat ending to soleares or alegrías, so it is the lively cousin. Learn one and you have the other: slow bulerías down and the soleá pattern appears.

Practise it with Count Studio

Start slow and speak the numbers before you add claps.

1. Say "12 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11" at a slow pace. Do four cycles without stopping.
2. Clap only the accents: 12, 3, 6, 8, 10. Count the beats in between silently.
3. Add soft claps on the other beats, as palmas sordas, and keep the accents loud.
4. Count it in sixes, then in twelve again, and check that both land on 12 together.
5. Raise the tempo only when the slow version is steady.

Count Studio has Bulerías in its library as a 12-beat cycle grouped 3+3+2+2+2, with accents on 3, 6, 8, 10 and 12. You can see it with the other world counts, and the same app covers other flamenco counts. Count Studio is coming November 27 to iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch.

Bottom line

Bulerías is 12 beats with accents on 3, 6, 8, 10 and 12, and the cycle starts on 12. Say the 12 first, count in sixes when it gets fast, and wait for the accent to land.